


5 Times Jemma Touched Fitz's Knee & 1 Time He Touched Hers

by LibbyWeasley



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Kissing, Knee Touching, Season 1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-07 02:42:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16845565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LibbyWeasley/pseuds/LibbyWeasley
Summary: Set between 1x2 and 1x20. Five times that Jemma touched Fitz's knee that changed the direction of their relationship.





	5 Times Jemma Touched Fitz's Knee & 1 Time He Touched Hers

**Author's Note:**

> As always I have to thank @blancasplayground for being amazingly encouraging, but this time she also came up with the idea for this fic. Apparently it was supposed to be a joke (but at this point you'd think she'd know not to joke about season 1 knee touching).
> 
> Also, a shoutout to @sunalsolove and @agentofship for thinking this was a good idea. :)

_The First Time_

“How many of those have you guys had?” Skye asked. 

Jemma smiled and said, “Skye, it’s important while in the field to unwind from time to time.”

After the day they had, they were more than entitled to a few drinks. She took a sip of her beer and considered Fitz, sitting on the other side of the cooler. 

“I don’t regret this day at all.”

He looked at her, surprised. “W-what, Simmons?”

“You said that this was the day we would regret going into the field. But it isn’t.”

After watching the launch, the other members of the team had left, gone off to do who knew what. So now, it was just the two of them, looking off into the distance as the sun set. 

Grabbing one last beer for each of them, she stood up and stretched before sitting down next to him. 

He took the beer from her and they clinked their bottled together before he spoke. 

“I don’t regret today either.”

Jemma was feeling slightly buzzed. Maybe Skye was right, after all. But it was a nice sort of feeling. She raised her arm to gesture at the bursts of color streaking across the sky. “We wouldn’t have seen this if we were still stuck in the lab.”

And then she let her hand drop, barely registering the fact that it had ended up on Fitz. Right above his left knee. It had been an accident, but now that her hand had found itself there, she could feel the heat of his body and the muscles beneath her fingertips. He was really quite wonderful and there was no one she would rather be in the field with. 

She didn’t realize she had said the words out loud until he answered her. 

“Me either. I mean, I wouldn’t have done this for anyone but you...but once you put your mind to something, it isn’t like you’ll take no for an answer.”

He sounded a little grumpy, but she was too sleepy to care. Letting her head fall against his shoulder, she said, “Just wait...one day you’ll be thanking me for taking you on this adventure.”

“Doubtful, Simmons.” He nudged her shoulder, jostling her from the very comfortable place she had settled. “C’mon, let’s get this put away, yeah?”

 

_The Second Time_

Jemma looked at Fitz through fresh eyes. She felt like she had never seen him before. He was going out into the field. Without her. She hadn’t realized until this moment how much that would bother her. She wouldn’t be there to take care of him if something went wrong. Or if he needed her.

She wouldn’t relax again until he was back with her, all in one piece.

“Jemma. Stop. Stop worrying about me. I can do this.”

This was all her fault. He wouldn’t have come if she hadn’t forced him to. And now he was going out there with no way to contact her...the team, rather.

“Now, don’t you do anything rash while I’m gone. Like jump out of an airplane.” He was teasing her. Trying to make her smile. So she did, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t worried about him. He had to know that.

She kept up a stream of chatter as he finished packing his bag, and was happy to see the smile on his face when she handed him the sandwich she had made him. She even reached out to touch his hand at one point, but the contact wasn’t enough.

Considering her options, she waited until he was ready to leave and scooted to the edge of the bed.

“Fitz?”

“Yeah, Jemma?”

He was right there. All she had to do was reach out her hand. So she did.

Her hand came in contact with his thigh and she let her hand rest right above his knee while she looked into his eyes.

“Be careful.”

“I will.”

And then he was gone. He would be fine. Of course he would. 

The thought of losing him was almost more than she could bear. But now she also had some inkling about how she felt about him. That little jolt of awareness that went from her fingertips to her toes when she touched him hadn’t been something she’d felt before. 

But she couldn’t tell him. There was no way she’d ruin their friendship over a crush on her best friend.

 

_The Third Time_

“...until then I’ll do everything I can to keep her alive. Excuse me.”

Jemma knew she was close to tears, so she made her way to the storage closet as quickly as she could. Being in the field was not what she had expected. Skye was dying and there was nothing she could do to help her. Not really. No matter how much the team trusted her. This was beyond her expertise. She fumbled with the packaging as she tried to free some gauze to clean up. 

And then there was a hand on her shoulder and Fitz pulled her into a hug. His presence was comforting, but it also made the tears that she had so carefully held back flow freely. She was sobbing into his jacket, but he held her close until there were no more tears, rubbing her back as she clung to him.

“I’m so sorry, Fitz,” she choked out.

“It isn’t your fault. This isn’t your fault, Jemma.”

She backed up against the wall and let her body slide down to the floor, feet extended in front of her, no longer having the energy to stay upright. She didn’t say anything while he sat down beside her.

“It is...we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for me. I’m the one who wanted to come into the field. And now…”

He put an arm around her and she leaned into his side, not having the energy to resist him. She knew he was comforting her as a friend, but she desperately wanted it to be more. She could close her eyes and pretend for just a moment. Until she felt more like herself again. Reaching out for him, she let her hand slide down his leg as far she she could reach. She felt him tense next to her. 

“None of this is your fault. Bad people do bad things. But we are the good guys. We have to stick together and hope that we can do some good in the world.”

Fitz always had such conviction when it came to things he believed in. If he thought they were doing the right thing, then she trusted him. She let herself be lulled by the feel of his fingers rubbing up and down her arm. 

“But, Skye…”

“You did your best.” He gave her arm a squeeze. “More than anyone should have asked you to do. And she wouldn’t been in there alone if it weren’t for me. I’m the one to blame here.”

“That isn’t true,” she insisted. 

They remained silent, lost in thought for a long time, until Coulson came looking for them, wanting her to check on Skye before they landed. 

“I guess we should go…” Jemma said, even though she didn’t want to move. 

Fitz stood and pulled her up. She might have imagined it, but it seemed like he held onto her hands for a little longer than absolutely necessary. 

 

_The Fourth Time_

“We need to talk.”

“We do?” Fitz asked, with a look she didn’t recognize. It made her stomach clench. 

“Agent Triplett thinks he’s done something to upset you.” She paused and took a breath. “Fitz, if you’re questioning his loyalty in any way, I can assure you —“

“It’s not him.”

“Well, what is it, then?” 

Fitz had been acting so oddly and she didn’t know what to make of it. Something between them had shifted and she was afraid it was the way she felt about him that was making everything different. He couldn’t know, could he?

“Uh...you know how I can be. I hate change.”

He said it with a little smile, but it felt like there was something more behind it. She walked closer to him and dropped down onto the balls of her feet in front of him. He was strapped into the jump seat, so he couldn’t go anywhere, but she got the impression that he might have if he’d had a choice. 

“Look, Fitz. Nothing has to change if _you_ don’t want it to.” 

She placed a hand of each of his knees to keep her balance. It occurred to her that she was practically on her knees in front of him, and that idea gave her a little thrill. She wondered what it would be like if they were together. If he felt the same way she did.

“You don’t mean that,” he said quietly. “I can’t stop things from changing. You can’t stop things from changing.”

She bit her lip and thought. He was right of course. She looked up at him and saw that he was studying her lips. Maybe he wasn’t as opposed to change as he would like her to think. 

“I just meant that things don’t have to change between us. Unless you want them to.”

He eyes met hers then. “Wh-what? Why would I want things to change between us?”

She gave him the best smile she could, even though she felt a little unsteady. “Not all change is bad. Some of it can be really good.”

He swallowed and his hands case to rest on hers. His warm, steady hands that made her feel like everything would be alright. He opened his mouth to speak...and froze when Coulson came back. 

“FitzSimmons, you okay?”

“Of course, sir,” Jemma responded, standing up and sitting back in the seat next to Fitz. 

“We’ll be landing soon,” Coulson added, buckling in again. 

Well, that could have gone worse. While she desperately wanted to know what Fitz was thinking, maybe this was better. He hadn’t said anything he didn’t mean and they both had more time to think about this. She just hoped he understood what she meant. They were normally on the same wavelength about everything, but this was new. Something they’d never explored before.

 

_The Fifth Time_

“Tell me that you’re not Hydra,” Fitz said, looking at her.

“What?”

“I know that it’s ridiculous, but I just need to hear you say it.”

His question was ridiculous for many reasons. Not the least of which was that if she _was_ Hydra she would lie and tell him she wasn’t. She leaned closer to him. “I’m not Hydra.”

“Yeah, good. Cause I’m not either.”

“Of course not.”

“Yeah. Because if you ever did --”

“I wouldn’t.”

“--I don’t know what I would do.”

“You’ll never have to find out.”

Ward’s betrayal had hit him really hard. She needed a way to reassure him that they’d always be together. She would never betray him. So she very deliberately reached out and placed her hand on his knee. Not wanting to lay all of her feelings bare before him, she looked towards the other side of the pool and tried to relax. Her emotions were running too high right now. 

Out of the corner of her eye she could see him staring at the point of contact between them. She smiled and waited for him to say something. She had made every move so far and she wasn’t going to go any further unless he gave her a sign. A very clear sign. 

“Jemma?”

She turned back at the sound of her name, low and raspy. His voice tugged at a place deep inside her. 

As he looked into her eyes he placed his hand over hers, and she felt heat rush through her. His gaze was dark and charged with a desire she hadn’t seen in him before. She didn’t speak, still waiting for something concrete. 

“I think we have a lot to talk about.”

“Yeah.” She sounded breathier than she intended. 

In unspoken agreement, they stood and slowly walked towards the room Jemma was sharing with Skye. No one stopped them or asked any questions as they went, walking side by side, but not touching. Her fingers itched to touch him, but she held herself back. This felt like a turning point in their relationship. 

They reached the door and she slid the key in the lock, not sure how their lives would change once they were on the other side of the door. 

 

_...And One Time Fitz Touched Hers_

The door was a little sticky and it shut behind them with a thud. Jemma walked in front of him and he allowed his eyes to scan down her body. They were both still barefoot, feet too wet to stuff back into sock and shoes, but her jeans and top were both form fitting and he appreciated the way they clung to her. Unless he was reading everything all wrong, it seemed like she might be just as interested in changing their relationship status as he was. 

She sat on the bed and he dropped down next to her. 

“Jemma—“

“Fitz—“

They both broke off and nervous laughter echoed around the room. 

“You go ahead,” she said, still not looking at him, but he could see her fingers bouncing up and down on the comforter. 

“Jemma...I don’t know what is happening here. But I think I figured what one of those good changes might be.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

He slowly reached out one hand and let it rest right above her knee. She sucked in a breath and finally turned to look at him. 

“Do you mean it, Fitz?”

Her expression was hopeful and for a moment he forgot what they were doing here.

“Yeah...er, I think so. As long as this,” he said, gesturing towards where his hand rested on her leg, “means, ‘I love you.’ Then, yes.”

“Oh, Fitz!” She turned to him so quickly he didn’t have time to catch himself before they fell back on the bed, Jemma slightly on top of him, her face inches from his.

When their lips met for the first time, it was all fire and excitement. They had taken things slowly for long enough and now he knew that there was no reason to wait. Their entire world had changed. Ward betrayed them. SHIELD had fallen. They were staying at a crappy motel. But the one thing that hadn’t changed was her. She was still that girl he had a crush on back at the Academy. Still his best friend. Still the woman he would follow to the ends of the earth.

She ended the kiss and pulled back to look at him. Her face was flushed and her eyes were bright. “I love you, Fitz. I have always loved you...it just took me some time to understand.”

He rolled onto his side, so they were laying next to each other and captured her lips before she could say another word. This kiss was sweeter and he tried to convey all the years of longing into it, hoping she’d somehow understand. Her hand came between them and started undoing the buttons on his shirt, when they heard the click of keys in the door.

They jumped apart and by the time Skye entered the room and looked their way, they were sitting side by side on the bed again.

“Um...guys, I just need to grab my jacket and you two can get back to making out,” she said, giving them a strange look.

“What?” Fitz said.

“Why would you say that?” Jemma squeaked.

“Well, aside from the fact that his buttons are undone and the bed looks all rumpled...both of you have ridiculously silly grins on your faces.” She gave them a half smile. “I’m happy for you two. I’ll be back in an hour or so, just make sure I don’t see or _hear_ anything.”

She ducked out of the room before either of them could respond. When Fitz turned to look at Jemma he saw that she was smiling again. When she laid back on the bed and crooked a finger at him, he thought he might be the luckiest guy in the world. Then, five seconds after that he stopped thinking entirely.

**Author's Note:**

> I'd love to hear from you. You can find me on tumblr @LibbyWeasley


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